Monday, March 21, 2011

Activists To Target Bloomberg On Marriage

According to City Hall News, activists plan to ask NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg to lobby state Senate Republicans on marriage equality.

Michael Bloomberg, who favors marriage equality, has promised advocates to do anything in his power to help push the issue. And those close to the planning say they plan on asking Bloomberg to appeal directly to fence-sitting Senate Republicans, whom he has donated more than $650,000 during this past election cycle, and over $1 million since 2007. Democratic consultant Hank Sheinkopf said he thought Bloomberg’s lobbying could help move the issue forward.

“If the mayor, who has been supportive of equality for all of his career, wants to do this then he should,” Sheinkopf said. “He who has the gold makes the rules, and in this case he has the gold and maybe he can make some new rules.” Several aides to Bloomberg did not return requests for comment. A handful of Republican Senators could be inclined to vote “yes,” activists say, including Greg Ball, Andrew Lanza, Jack Martins, Kemp Hannon, Roy McDonald, John Bonacic, Mark Grisanti and Jim Alesi.

New York Gov. Andrew Coumo has vowed a "full-court press" on marriage equality once this year's state budget is resolved.